In addition to the standard configurations of its Macs, Apple offers a number of build-to-order (BTO) upgrade options that include more RAM, more storage capacity, and faster processors. An "ultimate" configuration is a customized machine with the fastest options available. We’ve tested the ultimate configuration of the 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro and found that the performance—as well as the price tag—were both considerably higher than the standard high-end configuration.

All results are scores. Higher scores are better. Best result in bold. Reference models in italics.

Overall, the ultimate 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro with a 2.9GHz dual-core i7 processor was 11 percent faster than the standard 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro with a 2.5GHz dual-core Core i5 processor. The BTO system was faster in every test, but to varying degrees.

In CPU-intensive test such as MathematicaMark and CineBench CPU, the ultimate Retina MacBook Pro was 13 and 14.5 percent faster, respectively, than the standard system. Our graphics tests also saw a boost, with 9 percent higher frames per second in Portal 2, and 13 percent higher frame rates in the Cinebench OpenGL test. Our iPhoto import test was 19 percent faster on the ultimate model. File copy and file uncompression test results between the ultimate and standard model were close.

The ultimate Retina 13-inch MacBook Pro was a whopping 69 percent faster overall over the standard 13-inch non-Retina MacBook Pro with a 2.9GHz dual-core Core i7 processor. The hard drive in the non-Retina MacBook Pro took more than 5 times as long to complete the file copy and unzip tests as the ultimate MacBook Pro’s zippy flash storage. Photoshop was 35 percent faster on the ultimate system, and MathematicaMark was 14 percent faster. Graphics test results were very similar between the two.

But its not all lollipops and roses for the ultimate 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro. The $2199 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro—priced the same as the high-end 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro with the $200 processor upgrade—was 25 percent faster overall than the BTO 13-inch MacBook Pro. The 15-inch model has a quad-core 2.3GHz Core i7 processor and discrete nVidia GeForce GT 650M graphics. The 15-inch laptop finished the CineBench CPU test 41 percent faster than the ultimate 13-inch laptop, and displayed more than twice as many frames per second in our Portal 2 timedemo.

iTunes and Cinebench CPU results are in seconds, (lower results are better). VMware PCMark and MathematicaMark 8 are scores (higher results are better). Best result in bold. Reference models in italics.

We tested the $1699 standard configuration model, which has a 2.5GHz dual-core Core i5 processor, Intel’s integrated HD Graphics 4000, 128GB of flash storage, and 8GB of RAM. Apple offers a second $1999 model that is identical except it has 256GB of flash storage. The 13-inch Retina display has a 2560 by 1600 native pixel resolution.

Apple still sells non-Retina 13-inch MacBook Pros that have a 1280 by 800 screen resolution. The $1199 model has the same 2.5GHz dual-core Core i5 processor as the Retina laptop and the same integrated graphics, but it has just 4GB of RAM and a 5400-rpm 500GB hard drive. The $1499 non-Retina model has a 2.9GHz dual-core Core i7 processor, 8GB of RAM, integrated Intel HD Graphics 4000, and a 5400-rpm 750GB hard drive.

13-inch Retina MacBook Pro: Speedmark 8 Scores

Speedmark 8 score

13-inch Retina MacBook Pro/2.5GHz Core i5 (Late 2012)

184

13-inch MacBook Pro/2.9GHz Core i7 (Mid 2012)

153

13-inch MacBook Pro/2.5GHz Core i5 (Mid 2012)

121

13-inch MacBook Air/1.8GHz Core i5 (Mid 2012)

166

15-inch Retina MacBook Pro/2.6GHz Core i7 (Mid 2012)

275

15-inch Retina MacBook Pro/ 2.3GHz Core i7 (Mid 2012)

257

All results are scores. Higher scores are better. Best result in bold. Reference models in italics.

Retina vs. non-Retina

Much as we’d like to make this an extra-spooky episode of the Macworld Podcast, the truth is that, Halloween or not, for us this season is all about new products prepared by Apple for the upcoming holidays. Two such products have recently graced the test benches of Macworld Labs—the 13-inch retina display MacBook Pro and Apple’s latest Mac mini. Lab director Jim Galbraith and senior editor Roman Loyola join me to provide their impressions of these and other new Apple products.

Apple’s high-resolution Retina display now comes in another portable configuration, as the company unveiled a 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display on Tuesday that complements the 15-inch model introduced over the summer.

The 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro sports a display with a resolution of 2560 by 1600 pixels, a huge 4-times increase over the 1280 by 800 resolution on the 13-inch MacBook Pro released in June. The 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro display has a total of 4,096,000 pixels, which Apple says is nearly twice the number of pixels in a HDTV.

The 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro's screen is an in-plane switching panel, which allows for a wide viewing angle. Apple says the display has a 29 percent higher contrast ratio when compared to the previous model, as well as 75 percent glare reduction.

Like the 15-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display that debuted four months ago, the new 13-inch Retina laptop has two Thunderbolt ports. The Thunderbolt ports and two USB 3.0 ports are the main avenues of connectivity, as the new laptop no longer has the ethernet and FireWire 800 ports found on the standard 13-inch MacBook Pro model. The new laptop also has no optical drive, but it does have an SDXC card slot.